An American author of two young adult books says living in Bermuda has helped rather than hindered her writing career.

Debbie Rigaud, originally from New Jersey, moved to Bermuda with her husband Bernard Asirifi last year.

She has just released her first full length young adult novel, 'Perfect Shot' published by Simon Pulse and last year she released a novella published in 'Hallway Diary', a collection of stories for young adults.

"I wrote 'Perfect Shot' all in Bermuda," she said. "That was from beginning to end. It actually helped that I live in Bermuda. I don't have a work visa here so I work from home. It allowed me to focus full-time on my writing."

She said she finds living in Bermuda to be inspiring. "It is very pleasant and pleasing to me living here," she said. "The people of Bermuda have been so encouraging."

Last week she took part in a Literary Festival organised by the Bermuda National Gallery along with several other local writers.

"I find the creative community is really supportive," she said. "I have also reached out to other authors on the Island, such as Joanne Burgess and Nadia Aguiar."

She has also visited a number of local schools to talk about writing and said she has had a great deal of positive feedback from children on her work in 'Hallway Diaries'.

Ms Rigaud said that the Internet means people don't necessarily have to write from the United States to have a book published there.

"I would email in the manuscript,' she said. "They would make the edits on the script and then mail it back to me.

"At that point I would go into my digital file and smooth it out and email it back to them. It is a great thing when you think of it."

And she said countries as far away as the Netherlands have asked for review copies of her books.

Ms Rigaud said 'Perfect Shot' was a platform to discuss 'out of the box' experiences. In the story, the main character, a 15-year-old volley ball player named London, gets a "crush attack" on a photographer.

"It is about the crazy things we do for love," said Ms Rigaud. "London signs up for a modelling contract, because the boy she likes is working as an intern collecting the applications.

"But the unexpected happens, and London is chosen by the judges as a finalist with 14 other girls."

She said she wanted to help children deal with the discomfort of trying something new and positive.

"You feel good when you step outside of the box," she said.

Not long after finishing the book, Ms Rigaud herself took part in a photoshoot for 'Red Book Magazine'. She will be featured in the January issue along with several other "real women".

"Before that I have done little fashion shows in highschool, and I modeled for the cover of a book called 'Blackberries Blackberries' by Crystal E. Wilkinson."

Before coming to Bermuda, Ms Rigaud worked in the book publishing industry. She previously worked on such magazines as 'Seventeen Magazine', 'Essence', and 'CosmoGirl!'.

It was through her publishing industry contacts that she was selected by 'Redbook'.

"They were looking for women between the ages of 25 and 45 to do real fashion shoots," she said.

"I thought that was great for two reasons. The first was that I was going to be in New York at the time of the photoshoot, and number two I like looking at fashion spreads with real women.

"They didn't do any touching up. They did my makeup and put me in what they call a relaxed suit. That was like a spin on the modern day suit. They put me in really high heels that I could hardly walk in. I needed help positioning."

She said like her character London, she felt awkward at first, but got into it when they played some music she liked.

Ms Rigaud recently took part in the 'Famous for 15 Minutes' play writing competition put on annually by the Bermuda Musical & Dramatic Society. Her play was called 'In The Same Boat'.

"Ironically, the person who judged the final six thought it was the most Bermudian," said Ms Rigaud. "They thought it was a very local story. It was a story about four bachelors living on a houseboat in a nondescript area. I found it an interesting subject."

'Hallway Diaries' and 'Perfect Shot' are available in local bookstores now. Ms Rigaud will be doing a booksigning at the Bermuda Bookstore on December 12, and a book signing at Brown & Company on December 18.